FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Tuesday, October 5, 1999
Contact: Morrie Goodman
(202) 482-4883

Ranjit deSilva
(202) 482-7002
rdesilva@ntia.doc.gov

COMMERCE SECRETARY DALEY RELEASES REPORT ON
HOW COMMERCE PROGRAM HELPS YOUTH PREPARE FOR
FUTURE THROUGH INTERNET ACCESS

WASHINGTON-Commerce Secretary William M. Daley today released a new report that discusses how a Commerce Department program providing access to information technologies has helped create new opportunities for America's children and helped them better prepare for the future.

The report profiles projects funded by the Department's National Telecommunications and Information Administration (NTIA) and shows how America's children are using the Internet and other electronic tools to deal with the digital world and enrich the communities in which they live. The projects were funded under NTIA's Telecommunications and Information Infrastructure Assistance Program (TIIAP).

"This report illustrates how programs such as TIIAP and policies that extend such opportunities to those most in need are small investments that will yield large dividends for the future of America's children," Secretary Daley said in releasing the report at a Techies Day Celebration at Woodrow Wilson High School in Washington, D.C. "It shows how networking tools are offering children opportunities to form an array of rewarding relationships and helping to make their communities better places to live," Daley said.

"These TIIAP-funded projects demonstrate how access to the Internet creates opportunities to tap the creativity of children, to nurture their artistic talents and to create bonds between generations," NTIA Administrator, Larry Irving said.

The report, "How access Benefits Children: Connecting Our Kids to the World of Information" (in .pdf format), shows , among other things, how kids are creating new musical work online in collaboration with adult artist mentors; how children are reaching out to and learning from seniors through a TIIAP-supported online electronic network; and how children acting as "agents of change" are involving themselves directly in the economic revitalization of their communities.

Note: "How Access Benefits Children" is electronically available on NTIA's website www.ntia.doc.gov or by calling (202) 482-2048 for a hard copy.